“Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left.”-Exodus 14:21-22
So here we are folks.
We’ve now arrived at one of the most exciting and dramatic moments in all the Scriptures.
Israel is trapped on an enormous beach with the Red Sea on one side and the Egyptians on the other.
There is nothing in their experience that would allow them to possibly conceive how they were going to get out of this pickle.
They had braced for the worst.
Once Egypt recaptured them, they knew it would be death for some and a return to slavery for the rest.
Yet their worst fears were not to be.
We’re told that Moses stretched out his hand over the sea and then the Lord drove back the waters with a powerful east wind.
It is no insignificant thing that we are told this was an EAST wind.
A while back I mentioned you should take special note whenever you encounter the word “east” in the Bible because it always has important spiritual implications connected to God doing something special.
There is another awesome point I don’t want you to overlook.
Take a look at the following Scripture verses from the first chapter of Genesis.
And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so. God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good.-Genesis 1:21-22
God’s power over the physical elements of the world He created is again being manifested in this defining event in the theater of history.
However, I think the most important thing we need to know is that this event is a foreshadow or model of what is going to happen in the last days.
In those very last moments, just when it seems like darkness and evil are going to overtake this present world, God is going to exercise final judgement that will be the final separation of His people from those who are not his.
And with regards to those who are not His, note that the Scripture says “not one of them survived”.
Now the usual spiritual takeaway taught from this epic event is that God will make a way where there is no way.
While that’s certainly a valid interpretation, I feel the Lord stirring my mind towards a somewhat different take on the spiritual application of this event for our day and age
When it comes to the parting of the Red Sea, there seems to be a lot of existing deep cynicism, pessimism, and skepticism concerning whether this awesome miracle of God really happened or not.
Many scholars will go out of there way to demonstrate that the parting of the Red Sea really happened via natural means rather than by a supernatural act of God.
The following quote is one such example from a liberal scholar:
“In flat marshy districts large areas are often intermittently covered by shallow water or laid dry by the action of the wind”
I’m not sure if this scholar is aware that it would be more of a miracle that the whole Egyptian army drowned in shallow water than that God actually did what the Bible says He did.
But that’s not my point here.
My point is that it is the cynical skepticism residing deep down inside of people that drive them to find ways to explain away the supernatural acts of God as depicted in Holy Writ.
I really believe this account of Moses parting the Red Sea and whether one accepts it as true or not is one of the ultimate litmus tests of one’s spiritual health and whether one really trusts what the Bible says is true or not.
I know there are many out there who just pay lip service to God.
They go to worship, sing the hymns, mouth the prayers but deep down inside they really don’t care nor believe the events told in the Scriptures
To them, these accounts in Scripture are just ancient Jewish fairy tales and the only reason they go to synagogue or church is just to enjoy the social events.
To me these folks are the saddest people, the people in this world who I feel should be pitied the most.
Because they don’t really trust or believe in God.
To put it simply, they have indeed lost their faith (if they ever had faith to begin with).
The only things they have to live for are their families or the pathetic hope that the money they have in their bank accounts will last until their last dying breaths.
They are really no different than unbelievers, which come to think of it, actually makes them unbelievers.
There is another group of people who I feel much more optimistic about.
These people have faith in God and wholeheartedly believe the miraculous accounts as told in the Scriptures.
But the problem is that while they feel God may have performed those awesome works in Egypt during Moses’s time, He certainly isn’t doing so today.
I’ve thought long and hard about this final conclusion I’d like to express.
As a believer, I feel there are really only two ways to live your life on a day-to-day basis.
When you wake up in the morning, you can live your life positively expecting a miracle from God.
Or you can let the cynicism, pessimism, and skepticism of the world pull you down.
There is no neutral ground here.
You can either live your life with the hope and faith that God is with you and is going to move powerfully in your life…
OR you can succumb to the BS money-worshipping pessimism that the world has to offer.
I know it can be tough sometimes.
In just a few chapters ahead, we’re going to see many of these same Israelites who just witnessed this great miracle of God turn to grumbling and complaining when things became difficult.
Yet, nevertheless, I encourage you to be of good cheer and rekindle that innocent faith of a child who positively expects a great miracles from God to occur regularly.
Adopting such a mindset is so effective because it nips the seeds of hopelessness in the bud.
What’s the cause of depression and suicide?
It’s hopelessness.
What ultimately drives every type of addictive behavior whether it’s alcohol, drugs, or sex?
Trust me, it’s hopelessness.
And what is behind all of the cynicism, pessimism, and skepticism in the world?
Again, the answer is a godless hopelessness.
However, for one who lives by faith and trusts that God is going to perform a great miracle in his or her life, for that person it is literally IMPOSSIBLE to become hopeless and/or depressed.
So I ask you this.
Do you really believe that God through Moses parted the Red Sea?
Call me foolish but I do and that’s why I’m a super happy camper because if He did that for the ancient Hebrews, I am certainly assured that He will part the many “Red Seas” I face in my life.
I like what the very last verse of Chapter 14 says about how the Israelites responded after Moses performed this great miracle.
“And when the Israelites saw the mighty hand of the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord and put their trust in Him and in Moses his servant.“
CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT
“Because of their faith,
the people walked through the Red Sea on dry land.
But when the Egyptians tried to do it,
they were drowned.”
-Hebrews 11:29
NEXT TIME WE BEGIN EXODUS CHAPTER FIFTEEN
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